Indiana University
World Literature: "One Evening in the Rainy Season" Shi Zhecun
Did you know that modern Chinese literature “grew from the psychoanalytical theory of Sigmund Freud”? Designed for a world literature class, seniors are introduced to “One Evening in the Rainy Season,” Shi Zhecun’s stream of...
Curated OER
Russian Literature: Leo Tolstoy
Tenth graders research the life and literature of Leo Tolstoy. Through reading and research, 10th graders identify key events in the author's life. They explore the major themes of his writing and complete a research project. Reading...
Curated OER
World Literature: “The Wounded” By Lu Xinhua
“The Wounded,” the title story from a collection of stories about the Chinese Cultural Revolution (1977-78), is the central text in a World Literature unit examining choices. An anticipation guide, discussion topics, vocabulary list,...
Curated OER
Exploring Russian Folktales
Students examine Russian Folktales. In this folklore lesson, students discuss the attributes of common folktales they know and then discover details regarding Russian folktales. Students read 3 folktales and then complete the provided...
Curated OER
Literature: The Russian Cinderella
Fifth graders compare and contrast the Russian fairytale, Wee Little Havroshechka" with the Anglo-Saxon "Cinderella." In groups the discuss and then write their own versions of the Cinderella story. Students write about the differences...
Curated OER
"Ivan the Fool" Lesson 1
Young scholars in an ESL class read "Ivan the Fool", a folktale from Russia. In groups, they work with their partner to read the material and discuss what they have read. They write down any vocabulary they are unfamiliar with and...
Curated OER
Literature: Watching Anna
Students view the PBS presentation of Leo Tolstoy's, "Anna Karenina." Prior and after each episode, they discuss plot and characterization and in one lesson, use adjectives to describe each of the main characters. Then, students create...
Curated OER
Bring Your Character in a Bag - Animal Farm (Middle, Literature)
Ninth graders interpret a chosen character from the novel Animal Farm and represent that character in original symbolic form and present orally to the class.
University of Pennsylvania
Mock Trial of Alfred Dreyfus
What if scholars based mock trials on history? The fourth installment of a five-part series on the Dreyfus Affair asks learners to read various pieces of evidence before conducting a mock trial for a French officer. Teams answer...
University of Pennsylvania
Decoding Propaganda: J’Accuse…! vs. J’Accuse…!
Reading snail mail is a great way to go back into history and to understand others' points of view. The resource, the second in a five-part unit, covers the Dreyfus Affair. Scholars, working in two different groups, read one letter and...
Penguin Books
Folklore and Fairytales: A Guide to Using Traditional Tales and Reimagined Classics
Every culture has its own stories to tell. An interesting educator's guide shares a large collection of fairytales and folktales, some from different cultures and some re-creations of classics. A summary and brief teaching ideas...
Curated OER
Letters from Rifka
Students read Karen Hesse's book "Letters from Rifka" and explore how it presents the experiences of a Russian immigrant to America. They research and write reports on the experiences of various immigrants from different cultures, keep...
Curated OER
Ivan the Fool Lesson 3
Students determine that a quest is central to many folk stories. They name stories from their own literary traditions that involve quests and write their own, incorporating a quest. They design a board game that illustrates the czar's...
Curated OER
Digital Revolution
Students take pictures in the style of Eleanor Antin. in this photography lesson, students work in groups to research a revolution and read a piece of literature that corresponds. They create an original image that represents that...
Curated OER
Babushka Baba Yaga
Students read books by the author Patricia Polacco and complete different activities for the 4 books. For this language arts lesson plan, students read the books Babushka Baba Yaga, Boat Ride With Lillian Two Blossom, Pink and Say, and...
Curated OER
Capturing the Reader With Vivid Images
Students examine the use of imagery to hold a reader's attention in an excerpt from John Deever's memoir "Mr. John and the Day of Knowledge". They are introduced to background information about the Ukraine and create original imagery.
Curated OER
Capturing the Reader with Vivid Images
In this using vivid images worksheet, students identify vivid images and analyze their effectiveness in John Deever's "Mr. John and the Day of Knowledge." Students then write rich images for their classmates to imagine.
Peace Corps
Starting Off the Day (and School Year) in Ukraine
Young scholars compare the first day of school in Ukraine with the first day of school in the United States, including the challenges students and teachers both face in each country. They respond in class, in their journals, to the...
Curated OER
"Split" Character Studies in Crime and Punishment
Students write an essay evaluating split character traits on major characters in Dostoevsky's novel Crime and Punishment. In this instructional activity students are guided through discussion questions, group assignments, and vocabulary...
Curated OER
Animal Farm - The Rest of the Story
Students participate in a reader's theater using farm animals in the novella Animal Farm. In this Animal Farm lesson plan, students evaluate interpretations using the text, personal experience, and historical events.
National First Ladies' Library
Stories from the Thousand and One Nights
Students hold a Thousand and One Nights storytelling festival with each one memorizing a story to relate to classmates. While examining provided resource links, they select and practice a story they would like to retell. As a dress...
Curated OER
Babushka's Doll
Third graders read the story Babushka's Doll and write a summary of the main events in the story. In this summaries lesson plan, 3rd graders discuss the country of Russia before they read.